St. Paul Lutheran Church and School sits at 158 East Avenue in the Village of Hilton, a small farming community in northwestern Monroe County, New York. About 235 people gather there on a typical weekend to worship, learn, and serve together. The congregation has been rooted in Hilton since 1898, and today it combines three styles of weekly worship with a preschool-through-eighth-grade Lutheran school that has shaped generations of local families.
From a German Town Hall to a Modern Sanctuary
The congregation traces its beginnings to a Lutheran missionary named Rev. William Oldach, who was surveying in Hilton and discovered a small pocket of Lutheran families. On July 25, 1898, thirty-six people representing ten families gathered for their first worship service in the local town hall. Within a year, those faithful Germans had purchased land, built, and dedicated their first church. Rev. George Bornmann was ordained and installed as the first pastor on the day of dedication, though he soon accepted a call to Columbia, Pennsylvania. Oldach, who had first found the group, was installed as pastor on May 4, 1902 and served for forty years. The early congregation was known throughout the area simply as "the German Church."
In 1911, St. Paul joined the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the affiliation it still holds today. Sunday School was added in 1929, and the physical plant grew with a parish hall, a gymnasium, and two parsonages on either side of the church. In 1960, the congregation purchased ninety-one acres of farmland that surrounded the original lot; most of that land was eventually sold to developers, leaving the present fourteen-acre campus in the middle of the village.
Stability was as defining as growth. In its first 108 years, the congregation was served by only five pastors, with Pastor Albert Zoller retiring in June 2006 after thirty-four years of leadership. Family names from the original group, including Klafehns, Strussenbergs, Diedrichs, and Ophardts, are still part of the church's prayer list. After structural damage forced the original sanctuary to close in 1992, the congregation worshipped in the school cafeteria for thirteen years before dedicating a new sanctuary on June 12, 2005. Senior Pastor Mark Ball, a son of the congregation who grew up and graduated from its school, leads St. Paul today.
Three Weekly Worship Services
St. Paul offers three distinct weekend services to meet people where they are. On Saturday at 5:00 PM, an "unplugged" informal service combines traditional hymns and contemporary songs in a relaxed setting. On Sunday mornings at 8:30, a traditional liturgical service is accompanied by majestic organ music, with all lyrics, prayers, and messages displayed on projection screens. At 11:00 AM, a contemporary celebration led by the praise team brings a higher-energy atmosphere, also using screens for song lyrics and sermon points. Both Sunday services are livestreamed on Facebook Live and YouTube so that members who cannot attend in person can still take part.
The church describes its goal simply: to be a warm, welcoming community with a casual atmosphere designed to make anyone feel at home, whether they are lifelong Lutherans or visiting for the first time.
Children's Church and Sunday Bible Study
Children are treated as part of the church's present, not just its future. During the 11:00 AM service, children in preschool through sixth grade are invited to Children's Church after the second song. They leave the sanctuary to engage in hands-on, age-appropriate activities, Bible teaching, prayer, and music centered on the same scripture lesson the adults are hearing, then return to worship in time for communion. A separate Kid's Zone is offered during the 9:45 Bible study hour as a safe and fun place for children to gather while their parents are in class.
An Adult Bible Study meets Sundays at 9:45 AM in the cafeteria, sitting between the two Sunday worship services. A Youth Bible Study gathers Sunday evenings from 7:30 to 8:45 PM for students in seventh grade through high school and beyond, led by Youth Director Jennifer Dale, who also teaches middle-school English.
A Christian School on the Same Campus
St. Paul Lutheran School is the congregation's largest ministry to the wider community. Christian education was part of St. Paul's identity from the start: in 1902, the congregation founded a school with Pastor Oldach as its main teacher. That school closed sixteen years later amid anti-German sentiment and did not reopen until 1956, when David Meyer of Concordia Teachers College was called as the first teacher. The school added grades year by year, and by 1962 it stretched through eighth grade, where it remains today. Peak enrollment came in 1990 with 229 students; the 2015-2016 academic year marked sixty years of continuous ministry.
The school now serves children from age 2 through eighth grade. Its student body draws from eight school districts across northwestern Monroe County, including Brockport, Churchville-Chili, City of Rochester, Greece, Gates Chili, Hilton, and Spencerport, with busing available within a fifteen-mile radius. Families represent many Christian faith traditions as well as a range of cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds. The school maintains a non-discrimination policy and admits students of any race, color, or national or ethnic origin to all of its programs.
Michelle Reboulet serves as school principal, bringing more than fifteen years of experience in teaching and administration and a leadership approach marked by collaboration and service. The faculty includes Alexa Wolf (4th/5th grade), Kassandra Alvarez (kindergarten), Jennifer Riley (1st grade), Hannah Kruger (2nd grade), Rachel Blank (3rd grade), Josh Matula (middle school science), Sylvia Wong (middle school math and Spanish), and Betty Benoit (Spanish and music), along with early-childhood teachers Denise Matula, Karen Brown, Marine Knight, and Debbie Garbowski. Jay Butler directs athletics and physical education, Michele Kruger runs the library, and three school nurses, Rosemary Greenwell, Lisa Conley, and Rachel Hackett, support student health.
Tuition assistance is available through need-based aid, multiple-child and church-membership discounts, and flexible payment plans managed through FACTS. Tours can be scheduled through the School Office Manager.
Music and the Arts in Worship
Music shapes the worship experience at St. Paul. Barbara Flow serves as organist for the traditional Sunday liturgy, and Ashley Sassine directs the bell choir. The contemporary Sunday service is led by a praise team that includes vocalists and musicians, with Taylor Tydings and Jamal Brown among its regular members. Randy Reiss helps lead worship on Saturday evenings. The church welcomes new vocalists, musicians, choir members, praise team singers, and solo leaders to join the music ministry.
Serving Hilton and the World
St. Paul's Hands in Service ministry keeps the Hilton Food Shelf operating and supports other community needs. The Meal Ministry provides meals for families with a loved one in the hospital, for seniors who are struggling, and for members who have recently become unemployed. The Quilts for Christ group produces blankets that are shipped around the world in partnership with Lutheran World Relief and other regional churches. Gospel Outreach runs programs such as Faith in Bloom, which delivers plants to community members, and In His Steps, a prayer-walk initiative, along with events like free community movie nights.
Behind the scenes, an AV Ministry broadcasts worship and special events, manages visuals, and runs sound. Trustees care for the active campus, and Funeral and Wedding Coordinators walk alongside families during major life transitions.
Baptisms, Weddings, and Funerals
St. Paul walks with members through life's milestones. Baptism is described as an act of God that unites the baptized with the risen Christ and makes them members of God's family, washing away guilt, bestowing grace, delivering from the power of death, and promising eternal life. Families interested in baptism are asked to contact the Church Office. Engaged couples are invited to review the church's Wedding Information Form and Wedding Guide. The funeral ministry works closely with funeral homes to arrange services that remember, honor, and celebrate the deceased into eternal life, and a Preparing For Death document is available so members can record their wishes at any time. Pastoral needs are handled by Pastor Mark Ball.
Beliefs and Mission
St. Paul describes itself as a family-oriented congregation with a clear understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Its stated mission reads: "We the body of Christ at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, will continue to nurture our faith through the Word and Sacraments, with a clear understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Recognizing that all things come from God, we will, through preaching, teaching and reaching, spread His Word throughout our community and the world."
Getting in Touch
St. Paul Lutheran Church and School is located at 158 East Avenue, Hilton, NY 14468. The phone number is 585-392-4000, with a fax line at 585-392-4001. General inquiries can be sent to office@stpaulhilton.org, and giving is available through the Simply Giving program. Both Sunday services can be watched live and on demand on the church's YouTube channel and Facebook page.